


Believer

by KizaKurosaki15



Series: All I See Series [2]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Drama & Romance, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2017-08-05
Packaged: 2018-11-19 03:09:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11304486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KizaKurosaki15/pseuds/KizaKurosaki15
Summary: Tony Stark wasn't a believer in anything that came out of Fury's or Maria's mouths. he's never trusted S.H.I.E.L.D. but now he finds himself wondering if he can believe that his old love is alive and well, and what will happen with his new found relationship with Steve?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone, ive decided to go on and start a second part to the Story; All I see. and yes this will be a multi chapter Story, probably not very long but it will be part of a series that is called the 'All I See Series'. some will be one shots, others will be multi chapter. the stories will either take place before, after and in between the stories; All I see and this current one which i have named 'Believer'. another story inspired by a song called 'Believer' by Imagine Dragons. 
> 
> Anyway, please leave Kudos and comments of your guys thoughts. thank you! 
> 
> Always, Kiza

“HYDRA. Always fucking HYDRA isn’t, Agent Hill?” the said woman looks up from the stack of papers she and the CEO of Stark Industries where looking at. The said Genius was currently sitting behind a desk, an odd look for Anthony Stark considering his workshop was his desk. But here he was, shifting through papers that had seen better days behind a desk that had seen better days. “I'm shocked the government hasn’t sealed off what’s left of this place.” He stated, Maria nodded in agreement, this was the old S.H.I.E.L.D HQ and what was left of it after the whole HYDRA take over incident that had just occurred in the last few weeks. Honestly, it had been what- a year or two since the battle of New York? And shit was only getting worse by the looks of things. He wasn’t pleased to see two of his Avengers on the news being named as traitors, and he was even more pissed off at the fact that they hadn’t bothered to call him for help.

Then again, he couldn’t blame them either. it’s not like they knew how deep HYDRA’s influence ran, and they couldn’t risk getting caught. But that didn’t make Tony any less angry with Natasha and Steve. Bright side of things? Both are now safe and sound as they can be, living at the Avengers Tower like normal fucking people. Which is somewhat of the reason why Tony, Pepper, and Maria were here, at he destroyed compound looking, saving and downloading any information they could get that the government didn’t need to know about. Meaning, anything that revolved the Super Soldier serum that ran though Steve’s veins, anything that had to do with Red Room and Natasha, and anything that had anything to do with any of the other Avengers; Phil and Tony included, even if Phil was dead. Goddamn it, he hadn’t thought of Phil in ages, not since the Battle of New York. He was a futurist after all, dwelling on the past was never a thing he was good at, but deep down, he knew, Pepper Knew, Rhodey knew that it bothered him to no end that Phil was dead. Time did not heal all wounds, as some said it would, things did not get easier for him. after the first night of coming home from that battle, Tony hadn’t slept in that room or even stepped into it. something he was sure that Phil would hate if he was being honest. However, Tony couldn’t bear to be in that room, every time he would walk in, the onslaught of memories that came rushing into his head, seeing the blood stain in the Helicarrier, all of that rendered him into a sobbing, and panic ridden state that was worse then what Rhodey had ever seen. Thus, making him decide that it was best to just avoid that room at all costs.

“Got more files on the Super Soldier Serum, Tones.” Pepper stated as she walked over and placed them on the edge of the desk, knowing his hate for being handed things. Tony nodded as he kept flipping through the papers he had in front of him, he stopped when his eyes laded on a document that was titled T.A.H.I.T.I. And judging by the giant letters on it that read ‘ ** _CLASSIFIED_** ’ Tony was pretty sure whatever it was, it wasn’t good. sadly, however, the rest of the files where too burnt to read, too damaged. Perhaps scanning it he could get the information out of it. he shrugged it and set it aside to look at later. He picked up the files that Pepper had left on the desk for him (Bless her soul for putting up with his age long shit.) and quickly flipped through them before also setting them aside. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that first file,” Pepper piped up, causing the genius to look up at her, a bored look on his face, an expression he held a lot since the battel of New York, another mask among the many others he had. “It caught my attention as well. I’m having JARVIS look into everything and anything to do with that file as I speak.”

“Which file?” Maria asked, Tony had almost forgotten that she as even here, that woman really didn’t speak unless it was with Pepper or unless she felt the need. Tony eyed her suspiciously for a few moments and promptly ignored her question for in favor of opening the drawer to the desk and looking through it. that action cause Pepper to roll her eyes, she knew Tony was still very suspicious of anyone and everyone who was a S.H.I.E.L.D Agent. Pepper sighed and snatched the file, causing the genius to glare at her and go stiff. Of course, the red head ignored him and handed the file to Maria who took one look and seemed freeze in shock. She knew something about it, no doubt considering her reaction. “I don’t…I Don’t think anyone needs to know what this was-“

“That isn’t your call anymore, Hill.” Tony cut in quickly, cutting in before Pepper could say anything, he held his hand out, silently asking for the file, his eyes never once leaving the ex-Agent, knowing if he did, she would destroy that file in the blink of an eye. He might have taken her into his company but it was only because she was close to Fury, who was considered family (Thanks to him being an old student to his Aunt Peggy), but that was merely to have her hide behind his army of lawyers that not even congress was stupid enough to cross. The woman glared at the man in front of her, she wasn’t one to take orders, especially from Stark of all people, In the back of her mind, she knew better then to test him. he would end up getting information on this file anyway, with a sigh she relaxed, causing the genius to do the same.

“Let me gather more files about this. Then I promise to tell you everything. What it is, why it was made, and why it was used on one man. can you at least wait?” she asked, Tony glared but lowered his hand and went back to looking through the drawer silently and ignoring the two females easily.  Pepper eyed him for a moment then turned her attention to Maria who motioned for the red head to follow her. which was odd but Pepper didn’t question, she merely followed the other woman just out of Tony’s earshot. “Pepper, Im not sure Tony should know about this-“

“Why?” she asked, sounding very worried. She didn’t like to hide things from Tony, that and it was sort of hard to hide anything from Tony, especially now that S.H.I.E.L.D had fallen his paranoia was at an unprecedented high. Which was understandable, these guys managed to do what many had always wished to do- and that was to kill Nick Fury. And both Pepper and Tony knew that was something that seemed impossible, at least until they had heard the news about his death from Maria herself. It took a while before Tony reacted, he hunted down as many HYDRA men and women he could and made sure to charge them with everything and anything he could. If they had decided to resist arrest; well then Iron man wasn’t a kind of hero to show mercy to anyone who threatened the well-being of those around him and the city he called home.

“Project T.A.H.I.T.I was a protocol made just in case if an Avenger was to be mortally wounded in battle,” Maria stated as they walked a little further away, she and the other woman stopped in front of an old filing cabinet and yanked one of the drawer’s open, beginning to look through it. “It’s an experimental drug, used to bring an Avenger back to life- at least, that was the theory. But, before the Battle of New York, one Avenger was taken down.”

“You’re talking about Phil.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement, one full of sadness; Maria noticed. Right, she had forgotten the strawberry blonde had known Phil along with Tony for years before the battle of New York. So, talking about him must still be a sore spot for her. not like she could blame them, Phil was a nice guy, he treated everyone with an amount of respect that just made you like the guy. Maria sighed and ultimately nodded at the older woman’s statement. She wondered how she would react to all this information she was about to give her, and if she would keep it to herself long enough until Tony was a little more prepared to know the whole truth. “So? What-else?”

“The Drug that the protocol was made from…well, other worldly origin-“

“Alien then.”

“Yes, Phil Coulson was chosen to lead the project. We picked sick terminally people to participate in this project. At first, it was a success. The drug managed to regenerate the cells In the participants. However,…” Maria trailed off, causing Pepper to stare at her and sigh, as she pulled out a stack of files from the black cabinet. She knew very well what that meant, a negative side effect kicked in, and if the haunted look on the ex-Agent’s face was anything to go by, it was horrible side effects. “they began to mentally deteriorate. They started to experience Hypergraphia, Aphasia, Catatonia, or just complete Psychosis. It became very dangerous-“

“Wait, Wait. And you people planned on **_using_** that on one of the **_Avengers_**? And **_Phil Coulson_** was leading a project like that? using Alien material? Do you even realize how Tony would-“

“Yes,” Maria hissed, looking at Tony who was now in another room looking for more files, she sighed in relief. “Yes, I am **_aware_** of how **_Tony_** of all people would react to it. but we didn’t have a choice. The Avengers is a group of very gifted people, we have two deadly assassins, a Super Soldier, A man infused with Gamma radiation, an Asgardian God, and a Man with a damn ARC Reactor in the middle of his chest. Regular medical methods would **_not_** **_work_** on **_them_** , Pepper. That’s why we had this project. And even then,” she took a deep breath to calm down a little, she could tell Pepper was not in the slightest bit happy to hear about this project. “Phil backed out half way through it after he saw the mental results of it. we wouldn’t touch that project again. not until- “

“Not until Loki-“ Pepper bit his lower lip and looked away, Maria frowned and gently placed her hand on the other female’s shoulder. “Until that incident on the Helicarrier, right?” the dark-haired woman nodded as she took some of the files from Pepper’s hands and opened them, causing her to huff when she saw the files were of the Stark family.

“Correct. Loki’s specter had ripped Phil’s heart in half. He was dead-“

“ ** _Was_**?” Pepper cut in, now looking suspicious and more than a little angry now. if there was one thing everyone who was associated with Tony and Pepper, it was that when Pepper would get pissed- she would get **_pissed_**. And she was a force to be reckoned with when she got angry like she seemed to be now. “What the hell do you mean, **_was_** dead?” Maria stayed Silent, she looked around and made sure Tony still wasn’t in the room before turning her attention back to the CEO of the Stark Industries.

“I mean exactly that, Pepper. Phil Coulson **_was_** dead for several days. And after that, he was sent away to recover and well…he’s alive and doing well. At least, that’s what I was told by Agent May.” 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy, mother, of heck. i am so sorry for the long time without an update!! between work and errands it was hard to get this out, but here is chapter two! and i am so, so, so, so sorry that it is short!! but thank you to everyone who have given me kudos and thank you for the comments as well! they make my day! and i will soon start working on the small oneshots that take place before and in between this story and my first one! if there is anything in particular you want to request for the one shots, dont be scared to leave it in the comments!

Tony really hated HYDRA and S.H.I.L.E.D. right now. honestly, he loved his Aunt Peggy and everything she stood for. But good god did he hate the very organization she and his father had founded right now. it was about three or four in the morning, he was too lazy to look at his watch, and too lazy to ask JARVIS the time.

“ _It’s 4:45am, Sir. Welcome home_.” Oh, never mind then. Tony smiled up at the ceiling and nodded in a silent thank you at the AI as the elevator took him up to the common room that he shared with now six other people in the tower. He was sure they would all be asleep by now considering the time, either all knocked out in front of the TV or passed out in their respective rooms. He, Pepper, and Maria had spent all day at the now destroyed and abandoned S.H.I.E.L.D HQ digging through rubble to get their hands on as many of the files that had to do with the Avengers as they could. Well, more classified files as a shit ton of them had been posted on the internet by Natasha. (Not that he was bitter with now increased paparazzi that kept asking him questions about his time in Afghanistan). But there was also a lot of information on the team that hadn’t made it on the internet, thank god, but that meant the physical copies were still in the building or had been destroyed by fire or water damage. He looked down at the suitcase that was sitting at his feet, making sure to give it a glare before the elevator dinged and opened the doors, allowing him to pick it up and step out with a heavy sigh.

“Your back.” Tony yelped as he put his hand over his chest and looked over into the kitchen, spotting his now boyfriend; Steve sitting at the island, sketch book laying in front of him and pencils scattered around him. Tony glared at the pretty blonde before shaking his head when the Super Soldier looked up and smiled at him. “And rather late. Did something happen?” Tony shook his head as he made his way over to the tall blonde who had pushed himself away from the kitchen island a bit holding his arm out for the smaller male who gladly buried himself against his side, allowing the blonde to hold him tightly. “You look tired.” Tony hummed in confirmation, tossing the suitcase aside, not caring for the loud thud it made against the marble flooring. It made Steve flinch a little, but he figured that Tony was just tired and done with the day. The blonde smiled and chuckled a little when the genius climbed onto his lap and buried is face at the junction of where his shoulder and neck met, his favorite little hiding spot to tell the truth, how was it possible for this man, a man who was so sassy, sarcastic, and out there, be so cute and cuddly? Well, his mother did always say when your given a gift, you never ask why.

Both sat there for what seemed like hours. Tony was comfortably leaning against the broad chest that rose and fell gently, Steve’s hand ran up and down the other male’s back slowly, luring him into a relax, but not entirely deep sleep, a light doze one would call it. he could only imagine how his day went, he had left early in the morning, around 5:30 am, the same time Steve and Sam usually go out for their run. Which he found strange until Tony rushed back in, gave Steve a quick kiss on the cheek and explained he was going to go get back a few important files on the team at the S.H.I.E.L.D HQ that was now nothing but rubble. At first, Steve was worried, especially when he stated that only he, Pepper, and Maria where going. So that was that, Tony had left and was gone all day, he tried calling, but his phone was shut off, JARVIS couldn’t tell them if they were alright or not. So, yes Steve was worried throughout the whole day until now. humming softly, Steve used his free arm to close his sketch book, and put away all his art supplies, he wasn’t in a rush, but he could guess that a nice shower and their bed would be a much better option. And just like he guessed, Tony easily wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck as he was held up with the other’s hand that was resting under his thigh.

“Don’t forget the suit case.” Tony mumbled, nuzzling his face against the others neck, breathing in deeply and sighing heavily, letting his body go limp, Steve smiled a tiny bit, yup, Tony was tried, and merely done with today. “Where are we going?”

“You? im taking you to the shower so you can get cleaned. And I’ll be coming back down here to fetch all this stuff and bring it up to the room. Okay?” Tony hummed and nodded, still completely limp as he was taken upstairs. Steve chuckled, leave it to Tony to be so cute and docile even though his usual personality was like that of a firecracker and full of sass. With a small huff, he carefully set the smaller male on their shared bed before kissing his forehead, earning a small hum of content from the genius before he waked back downstairs to get the suitcase and his sketch pad.

He has been with the genius for about a year and half now, honestly Steven didn’t even know how it happened. He supposed it started out a few months after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D, Tony had caught wind of everything that was happening in DC, Steve wasn’t expecting James Rhodes to show up In Tony’s private jet to pick up Natasha, Sam and himself. Once taken back to New York, there they were all admitted into one of Stark’s many private clinics, Steve could only remember that much, then he remembered waking up with Sam in the room with him as soft music was being played. Days later, Natasha came walking in with a man he hadn’t met before and Tony Stark. And oh boy, did. Tony. Look. _pissed_. He came walking in like a man on a mission, and he was, in a sense anyway. Steve could remember the smaller male _immediately_ going off on a rant about why he didn’t call him sooner, what was he thinking trying to handle this on his own without much help if any at all. He yelled about how it was Natasha’s job to keep an eye on him to keep him safe, Sam had tried to snap at the genius, but Tony easily shut him up by telling him he could have him thrown into prison if he so much spoke another word.

Steve had never seen Tony so…. _Scared_. No, his yelling from anger, it was from fear of what could have happened to him, Sam, and Natasha. Steve couldn’t help but smile fondly at him as the genius’s voice slowly got lower, and lower, and lower until finally he was left there panting as he tried to catch his breath. Steve sighed as he reached over and gently pulled the older male closer to the bed he was laying on. The blonde wrapped his arms around the other male’s middle and pressed the side of his face to Tony’s stomach, hugging him tightly. he felt the son of his now long-gone friend place his hands on his head and held him there against his stomach, gently massaging his scalp as they stood there in silence. Steve could feel tony shaking under his hold, he could hear the shuffling of footsteps as he assumed the nameless guy who showed up with Tony (which he later found out was Clint) had lead Sam and Natasha out of the room. They stayed like that for a while, Tony had finally stopped shaking and pushed the blonde’s head away, but his hands never left his hair.

 _“Don’t you ever scare me like that again…Okay, piccolo[1]?”_  Steve had nodded and agreed to call him next time he was in a tight spot. Only, and if only tony agreed to go on a date with him. and to this, Tony responded with in fluent Italian; “ _Naturalmente, soldato sciocco [2]._”

They never stopped going on dates since then. Tony had lifted so much in spirits since the battle of New York after the first month of dates. But it took a whole three months to say they were in fact in a relationship. Steve didn’t mind, something had Tony…. cautious about being in a relationship and that was something that shocked Steve considering he was called a ‘playboy’.  Even now, Tony traded carefully, Steve didn’t mind, he had expected that this sprouted from some sort of past relationship experience. He had asked Tony about this before, the smaller male would merely freeze and seem to get a sad, longing look in his eyes, he’d often give the war hero a sad smile before responding; “ _Don’t worry about it, gorgeous.”_ Before Steve would instantly drop the subject. Honestly, he hadn’t thought he would love the other male as much as he did, considering they did fight a lot of the time. With a sigh, Steve shook his head and picked up his art supplies and the suitcase Tony brought back home before turning and heading back upstairs to their shared room.

“About time, I was waiting.” Tony called from the bathroom, Steve tilted his head as he set aside their respective items. “I can sense the confusion from all the way in here Steve. I was waiting because you are going to join me.” Steve didn’t need any further invitation after that statement as he rushed into the bathroom, earning himself a laugh from his lover.

000

“ _You told her_? Maria! Do you even realize how dangerous that-“

“Oh, don’t even give me that crap, Coulson. Just don’t. you’re not the one who had to see him every damn day after the battle of New York, You’re not the one who had to help Pepper bring him back from his PTSD flashbacks of that day, you’re not the one who had to _remind him_ that your dead whenever he would walk into a room and _ask people_ where the fuck you were!” Maria snapped, causing Coulson’s team to shuffle awkwardly as they looked everywhere but at the two arguing. “Do you even realize how much Rogers has-“

“ ** _I KNOW_**! I don’t need you to remind of that!”

“Apparently, I do!! just because hes with Rogers doesn’t mean hes stopped loving you! hes never gotten over you, and he never will, but now that he saw the file for the T.A.H.I.T.I project hes going to find out that you are alive and look for you! do you see the problem here!?” Maria asked, at this point, Phil’s team looked between each other and the two arguing ex-agents in confusion. May seemed to be the only one to know what the hell was going on, which didn’t shock them to be honest. “Phil, he _still loves you_. with Steve or not- “

“He’s finally moving on, starting to become happy again, Maria. I _can’t_ ruin that by suddenly going back. Steve is happy, Tony is-“

“Happy, yes, but he would be happier with you _and_ Steve there.” Phil groaned as he ran his hand down his face, both now silent as he kept his gaze on the floor, Maria watching him carefully. She knew this was a bad idea to tell him, but she had to. The need was there, yes maybe Steve wouldn’t like the idea of sharing Tony with Phil, but she had to try. She knew about how deep their relationship was, she knew how serious and how much Phil loved Tony. That was something that couldn’t be ignored, not by her, not by Phil, she wouldn’t allow it. “Phil, please…”

“No. not gonna happen, Maria. Right now, we have other things to worry about, I have a team to look after, one of my own just got shot in the gut, another was a HYDRA agent all along. right now, I should worry about helping clean up Fury’s mess. Do you understand that?” the dark-haired woman bit her lip and stared at the other Agent, a look of slight disappoint firmly planted on her face as she shook her head a little. “I _love him_. god I love him, Maria you _know_ this. But if he were to find out right now, and via someone else, would that really help him?”

“I suppose not… But you and everyone seem to forget how smart he is. And just what hes willing to do to get to the truth. Hes determined, Like Agent Carter was.”

“Well, she was his _godmother and aunt_. Im not shocked…just…please don’t tell him…not yet.” Maria sighed heavily, she knew that she would regret this so much later down the road, she could just feel it in her bones.

Tony did not like being lied to. It was the one thing that pissed him off more than when someone tries to hurt anyone he cares about. He liked to think he could trust the people he called his friends in a world where he couldn’t trust anyone else because of past experiences, or just because of his upbringing. However, Maria also knew why Phil was doing this, keeping this from Tony. Tony was just starting to get back to his old-self, before the battle of New York, and that was thanks to Steve who had gently, but constantly poked and prodded at the genius until he started to relax once again around the group, until he finally started to talk to Maria about what he was feeling since the Battle of New York. He was opening up again and Phil knew that if he came waltzing back into Tony’s life, he could potentially ruin what he and Steve had along with whatever progress the ex-playboy had made with starting to get over Phil’s death. And progress with Tony, was very, very, **_very_** hard to get in the first place, and it was frail, anything could shatter that progress. She sighed and sat down on the couch of the other Agent’s ‘bus’, she rubbed her temples, fighting back the looming headache that was creeping in. she blinked when a glass of whisky appeared in front of her, she glanced up at Phil who had a sad look on his face, she smiled sadly up at him and accepted the glass. She watched as the younger Agent sat down next to her, his own glass in hand and setting the bottle of whisky down on the small table in front of them.

“He told me once…a few weeks ago, that he was starting to understand how his Aunt Peggy felt after she lost Steve in the ice…he said, it’s like your drowning, but you refuse to pull your head out from under the water, even when no one is holding you under it.” Maria explained softly, it was one of the few times Tony spoke about his godmother/aunt. He didn’t talk about her much, but that was because not even a handful of people knew his relationship to her, and he seemed to have preferred to keep it that way. “He said, he didn’t know how Peggy ever lasted so long feeling like that, but he figured she made it the same way he was- he was just…. forcing himself to keep moving forward. For your sake if not his own.”

Phil nodded as she spoke, he stared ahead of himself, his grip tight on the glass as he bit his lower lip roughly. “Sounds like Tony, to tell you the truth. He never really did things for himself as he did them for the sake of other people. He isn’t selfish like the world of media likes to make him seem. He likes to think that he has to carry the weight of the world on his own.”

“Just like you? like what you’re doing right now with this whole HYDRA business?” Maria asked, Phil smiled a bit as he hung his head low and chuckled, nodding. “You both are so stupid. And are very lucky I love you both, otherwise I’d put a tazze the both of you.” at this, Phil laughed a bit, causing Maria to smile at him. mission accomplished, she missed seeing her boys smile and laugh. Honestly, she grew attached to him, Fury, Tony, the Avengers team, especially Tony. That man had a way of wiggling his way into someone’s heart without even realizing it or trying to be honest. “Phil…you have the chance to be with him again…please don’t let love die. Not because of some stupid order from Fury, not because of HYDRA, especially because of fear. Please?” she practically begged, the other ex-Agent sighed heavily and finished off the bit of whisky in his glass. Maria sat there for a bit, waiting for a response, she grew angry with every passing minute the other said nothing and she knew exactly what that meant. “So, that’s it? you’re going to make him like your cellist? Great. **_Fucking great_**.” She hissed, slamming the cup down, tears in her eyes as she stood up and stormed out of the of plane, ignoring Agent May as she stormed by who watched her leave.

The other woman sighed and walked over to Phil who was staring down at his glass, dead silent. “I'm not going to ask,” May stated, causing Phil to look up at her. “Because to tell you the truth, I don’t care. We have other things to worry about. Come on, we have to get Skye fixed up and soon.” Phil nodded as she stood up and followed his fellow ex-agent.

Honestly, the last thing Phil wanted was for Tony to be like his old ‘cellist’. But if it meant he’d move on and be happy, then so be it. now he could only hope Maria wouldn’t tell Tony herself that he was alive and well. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations of Italian words:  
> [1] Little one, and or Small  
> [2] Of course, silly soldier


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! i am so sorry for the late update! i try to update this when i can, life gets in the way sometimes and i am sorry about the short chapter i promise to give you a longer chapter next time! anyway, thank you to everyone for the kudos and the comments! 
> 
> ~Always  
> ~Kiza

“ _Sir, I’ve been running those scans on the classified documents you brought home the evening before, and its taking a bit longer than expected.”_

Tony groaned loudly form his spot between Natasha and Steve on the couch. He had completely forgotten that he had put those files in his workshop to be scanned hours ago. and JARVIS had been oddly quiet, and now he knew exactly why. He huffed when Steve patted his leg in a way to comfort him, seeing his head was on Natasha’s lap, being petted like a kitten.  Honestly, he probably would have been down in his workshop scanning through many of the other files he had and putting them under lock and key, metaphorically speaking anyway. With a heavy sigh, he sat up with a grunt, and swiped his hand up making a holographic screen to appear in front of him. he skimmed through the bits and pieces of the files that he had collected.

“You guys really went in to sweep the place out, huh?” Natasha asked as she watched the man’s eyes scan the screen, Tony nodded with a hum. “Anything we should be worried about that managed to get out?”

“Not really. The more classified files managed to stay off the internet these are physical copies of our own files and a few other classified files. A lot of them were damaged during the whole HYDRA debacle, so you can’t read them unless you run them through a decoding scan, and even then, there is a chance that it won’t decode everything.” Tony explained as he watched one of the said files scanned, it was the one for the TAHITI project. He knew that he had told Maria he would give her time to look for more files on it, but he also knew better than to believe everything he was told. Something his Aunt Peggy made sure to teach him over the years while he was growing up.

“So, what your telling me is that even after that scan, you won’t get everything out of it?” Steve asked, Tony then turned to look at the taller male with a blank look, causing Steve to blush a bit ad give him a sheepish smile.

“What kind of man do you take me for, Rogers?” the genius asked with a grin, the red head let out a huff and shook her head, of course Tony would get all the information he needed, this was Tony Stark after all. This man was able to do things, create things that no ones else would be able to.  A loud beep startled the three, Tony frowned when he pulled up the finished scan.

“Project TAHITI? What In the world is that?” Steve asked as they stared at the letters, Tony opened his mouth to respond, but the sound of the elevator arriving to the floor stopped, he turned and watched as Maria walked in, she froze in her place after she stepped out. He followed her gaze and wasn’t shocked to see it land on the image, but what did shock him was seeing her eyes slightly puffy and red. She looked upset? That was…strange, even for her. she wasn’t the kind of woman to get upset so easily, or over anything for that matter. She was tough as nails, thick skinned. So, it was natural that Tony felt a bit worried over her, she had become one of the boys, so to speak. She fell right into place with the Avengers, she was a lot more laid back than how she was as Fury’s second in command. “Maria? Everything okay? your eyes are-“

“Project TAHITI was a horrible project to start. No matter how good the reason behind it might have been.” She suddenly cut in, her voice strained, causing the three in the room to stare at her with shock, Tony removed his legs from Steve’s lap and sat forward. He watched as she pulled the file over to her and then pulled up other files that fell under the same project. “It was inhumane, but the project was made with the best intentions.”

“The road to hell is sometimes paved with good intentions, Maria.” Steve reminded her, she nodded slowly, completely agreeing with the blonde. How could she not? After everything she has seen with her own two eyes over the years, it was hard to argue with such a logical statement.  “Im going to assume that this project didn’t turn out the way you all wanted. Right?” the super soldier asked as she pulled up more interactive screens before her. she gave him a curt nod, making the blonde glare at her, Tony knew that Steve was starting to get suspicious. Not that he could blame him, S.H.I.E.L.D was never in Tony’s good graces, at least not after his Aunt Peggy stepped down. From there, they got questionable, exceptionally under Fury’s rule. ergo why he didn’t have such a good history with the one-eyed man, he never got along with him, even when Peggy was still around and healthy.

“Project TAHITI was originally made for the emergency case if an Avenger was mortally wounded. Thus, a drug was created to allow us to bring you guys back from the brink of death if need be. The drug was made from…exotic material.” She said carefully, watching for Tony’s reaction, and sure enough- he did not react in her favor for her choice of words. She swore the glare he gave her was probably the same glare he gave to the Ten Rings and Obi when they had tried to kill him. that look could kill an entire country if at all possible, she wasn’t going to deny that It did in fact, give her the chills. “Before you say anything, Mr. Stark-“

“I will damn well say whatever the living hell I want.” He cut in quickly. “We had a deal, you’re here showing me more information than I had, so you better start spilling **_EVERYTHING_** as it really is. Got it, Hill?” the genius snapped, Maria glared at him, but she knew from experience that this wouldn’t scare Tony. Hell, when he was younger he used to hack into Fury’s personal computer and for the fun of it, mess with all his files. He even went as far as to stick hamsters in the HQ air-vents when Peggy brought him to the building one day. Anthony Edward Stark did not care who the hell was in charge, he would challenge whoever he needed to get the truth out of them. he had power, and he had no shame in making it very clear, just like now.

Evidently, Maria sighed and nodded giving this victory to Tony, who nodded back, but remained tense and looking very much displeased. “What I meant by exotic material, is that we used tissue samples, and blood samples from a long dead alien of sorts.”

“ ** _ALIEN_**!?” Steve asked, sounding shocked, Tony seemed to have frozen in place from the information and Natasha was now standing up, grabbing onto Steve’s arm. “What do you mean-“

“Was it from the battle of New York?” Tony asked, voice low and dark. The dark-haired woman bit her lip and nodded. Steve frowned at Tony’s tone, knowing very well what was running through his mind. Yes, he had learned about Tony and Phil’s relationship two months into their own relationship. It had come up by accident, but it brought back the haunted, lonely look Tony had been wearing for so long after the battle. Steve swore he had never seen him like that and he never understood why. It wasn’t until the genius sat him down that night after their dinner date and spilled his heart out.

Tony told him everything, the day he met Phil, how and why he had showed up in his life. Steve learned about just how long they had been together, he learned about all the time they spent together and just how long they managed to keep the relationship under the ropes. Tony had told Steve that he loves- yes that’s right, he still loves Phil- with every fiber of his being, just as much as he loves him. Tony had cried for the first time since the incident that night, he cried over the lost love he had seen and imprinted on as the anchor he needed. But, Tony also told him that very night that he loves him, that even if he still loves Phil, he was the reason why he was still hanging on. Steve couldn’t fight the feeling of overwhelming warmth that flooded him that night, he held Tony so tightly that he thought he would break a few of his ribs. But, Steve did also openly admit he had grown affection for their unofficial handler, which made Tony laugh because yes, Phil was handsome and a charmer.

“No, it was found during the SSR’s time. And it was kept by them up until S.H.I.E.L.D was founded. The name if the subject-“she said as she pulled up an image of the decaying body of some sort of blue creature. “Was Guest Host, or G.H. as we called him. we later-“

“You expect me to believe that the SSR, the one my own Aunt was in, kept that around for so long?” Tony asked, Maria then glared at him.

“Despite what you like to think, and what Peggy told you as you grew up- she had secrets. And she never told all of them to you, who mind you was merely a child back then.” She snapped, Tony growled and made to stand up, but was stopped and pushed back down by Natasha who kept her hand on his shoulder. “Now, back to what I was saying- S.H.I.E.L.D scientists later found that the subjects bodily fluids had highly potent regenerative qualities. From this, several serums where pulled from his body. so the drugs; GH.211, GH.289, GH.317, GH.319, GH.324 and GH.325 where found. However, out of all of them,” she paused and swiped aside all of the drugs listed but one; GH.325. “GH.325 was the one that held the ability of completely regenerating cellular tissue and implanting fragments of cellular memory of the host to the receiver.” Tony nodded, he looked at Natasha and Steve who looked a tad bit lost, he chuckled a bit and shook his head a bit. He didn’t blame them, some of this shit went over his head as well, but he got most of it. “But…there where some…unseen after effects.” This made the three tense up, and she knew that this wasn’t going to be a pleasant thing to explain or hear.

“Side effects? What side effects?” Natasha asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

With a sigh, Maria continued. “well, first you need to know that we had to test this drug out first. So, we picked six agents with terminal illnesses for the testing to see if it would cure them. and It was a success.” She said, pulling up the files for each Agent, Tony frowned as he read through them quickly, some of them had families. “But…after they recovered physically…they mentally started to deteriorate. And somewhat quickly. now, what I mean by that is that they all started to exhibit hypergraphia, aphasia, catatonia, or just complete psychosis.”

Hearing that, the three Avengers stood there in shock, taking in all the information she had just dumped on them. Tony stared at the silent video of one of the agents that had received the serum, his eyes followed every movement of the Agent carefully. He flinched heavily when the Agent then proceeded to stab themselves in the eye. Immediately the video stopped playing thanks to Steve who had swiped it away from their view, even he looked deep upset over seeing it.

“And Fury wanted to use that shit on us?” Tony asked, tone low as he glared at Maria, not exactly upset with her- well, yes, he was upset with her as well. She knew about this project, she knew exactly what this drug would do if used on a human. That shit did more harm than good by the looks of it, how many times did they try it on people before they had decided this was a very bad idea? That is….if they even decided it was a bad idea. “Fury would be sick enough to lead that project. How many people had to die for you all to decide-“

“Fury wasn’t the one leading the project.” Maria cut in, this gave Steve a confused look.

“Then who?” the Super Soldier asked, arms crossed over his chest, Tony now standing up next to the taller male. Maria sighed heavily and bit her lip, looking genuinely upset. “Maria?” she shook her head and pulled up Phil’s file. Steve, Natasha and Tony stood there shocked seeing the man’s file. None of them really talked about him not since the Battle Of New York. “What-“

“Phil Coulson was the one leading the project. He was the director. He picked the six Agents and recorded all the of the data for this-“

“Your lying.” Tony hissed, making the woman look at him. “Your. Lying. Phil had morals! He would never-“

 _“Good Morning Director Fury, I regret to inform you that I’m handing in my resignation. I know you brought me on to Project T.A.H.I.T.I. because you trusted my judgment, and it’s that judgment that’s telling me I can no longer, in my good conscience, let the testing continue,”_ Tony stopped midsentence as the video of his dead lover was flicked in front of him by Maria. Instantly, Tony felt a lump in his throat at the other’s words, he really had been the one leading the project. How did he not know? Tony never kept any secrets from Phil, none, and he believed that Phil had kept nothing from him as well. _“I understand you started the program to potentially save a mortally wounded Avenger, but the side effects are too extreme. We had initial success with the regenerative properties of the guest-host tissue, but after the initial physical recovery, the subject began to deteriorate mentally, displaying hypergraphia, aphasia, catatonia, or just complete psychosis. To be clear, I’m recommending the termination of Project T.A.H.I.T.I. Under no circumstances should these procedures or drugs be administered to anyone ever. The cost is far too great."_ The chocolate eyed male at this point was taking deep breaths, Steve was whispering something to him, but not like he could actually pick up on the words. he was staring at the face of his beloved, the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, ending a inhumane project.

“He sent that in…and the project ended in 2014. But the project had one recipient.” Maria stated carefully, she watched Tony carefully knowing he was borderline panic attack and emotional break down. She looked to Natasha who seemed to be confused but upset by Tony’s reaction. Natasha had become oddly protective of Tony over the years, the two got along a lot better than she expected.

“Who?” Tony asked softly, Maria then really took a step back on this. Did she really want to tell Tony? Did she really want to basically tell him that hes been lied to by the love of his life? Did she want to tell Tony the truth that could hurt him so much worse then what had happened in Afghanistan ever did? “WHO MARIA!?” he shouted, making Steve wrap his arms around the smaller male to hold him back, the billionaire was now breathing much more heavily than just a moment ago. with a heavy sigh, the Ex-Agent finally made her choice.

Yes, she did want to tell Tony the truth. Not because she wanted to hurt him, no. But, because he deserved to know the truth.

“The last person to receive the drug and have it successfully work, with no after effects was, Philip Coulson.” 


End file.
